Chapter 76: She’s Done Pretending
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The moment Eunuch Hu tucked the Protective Talisman close to his body with the utmost care, Yu Zhi Yi found it hard to keep watching. She averted her gaze without hesitation.
After sending Eunuch Hu off, Madam Yao had the servants carry the gold and precious medicinal herbs into Breeze Pavilion. Then she turned to Yu Zhi Yi and said, “You don’t need to come to the dining hall for meals for now. Whatever you’d like to eat, just have the small kitchen prepare it for you. Focus on recuperating.”
Yu Zhi Yi pressed her lips together, wanting to bring up the proposal from a few days ago, but Madam Yao gave her no opportunity. Instead, she addressed Du Zi Heng, “Why haven’t you taken your wife back yet?”
Du Zi Heng offered no objections.
Yu Zhi Yi: “…”
Soon, the sedan arrived at Breeze Pavilion. Just as her feet touched the ground, Du Zi Heng stepped forward, intending to lift her into his arms.
Startled, the Defensive Bracelet Yu Zhi Yi wore activated instinctively, throwing Du Zi Heng backward.
He stumbled several steps before landing on his rear.
Yu Zhi Yi: “…”
The young man sat on the ground, his ink-black hair, shaken loose from the impact, falling to his shoulders.
He tilted slightly, his hair veiling his face and obscuring his expression. For a brief moment, his demeanor turned shadowy and ominous.
“You…” Yu Zhi Yi frowned.
Suddenly, Du Zi Heng moved. Rising to his feet, he nonchalantly brushed the dust off his clothes. “I just thought you might have difficulty walking and wanted to carry you inside.”
“That’s unnecessary. I can walk.” Not inclined to press the matter, Yu Zhi Yi turned and, with Zi Yuan’s help, headed into Breeze Pavilion.
Du Zi Heng stood there for a long time, his gaze vacant as though lost in thought.
“Miss, what’s wrong with the young master?” Zi Yuan asked, glancing back at Du Zi Heng, who lingered by the doorway like a stone guardian.
Yu Zhi Yi shrugged. “Who knows?”
Seeing her mistress unconcerned, Zi Yuan dropped the subject. However, she couldn’t hide her worry as she looked at Yu Zhi Yi’s pale face. “How could something like this happen? Does it hurt?”
Yu Zhi Yi touched the wound on her abdomen, smiling faintly. “Injuries always hurt, don’t they? But it’s within what I can endure, and honestly, it doesn’t hurt anymore.”
Compared to her spiritual exhaustion and emotional scars, the pain of the flesh felt trivial. If enduring this injury meant breaking free of her suffocating marriage, she would not hesitate to stab herself in the chest.
Zi Yuan’s eyes reddened with tears. “It’s all my fault for being useless.”
Yu Zhi Yi sighed. “You weren’t even there at the time. How could it possibly be your fault?”
Zi Yuan sniffled, her eyes and nose turning red as she fought back tears. “It’s because I’m useless. If I’d been with you in the palace, I would never have let you get hurt.”
She would have shielded her mistress with her life if needed.
“There, there.” Yu Zhi Yi tapped the girl’s reddened nose. “You’re turning into a carrot. See? I’m fine.”
“Don’t worry. Aside from heaven itself, no one can truly hurt me.”
“If I’ve been injured, it’s because I needed to be.”
Zi Yuan froze.
Miss Yu had deliberately allowed herself to get hurt. Though she now understood this, the realization only made her feel worse.
Her mistress must have faced an insurmountable problem, using injury as her solution. But had the goal been achieved?
If not, then her poor mistress had suffered in vain.
Poor Yu Zhi Yi rubbed her stomach. “Zi Yuan, I’m hungry.”
“The small kitchen has been simmering porridge for a while now. I’ll fetch you a bowl.”
Yu Zhi Yi’s smile nearly cracked. “…I don’t want porridge. I want meat, savory pastries, and seafood.”
She’d had porridge every single day in the palace, enough to make her gag.
But the imperial physician had decreed porridge and nothing else. She couldn’t very well reveal that her injury, while severe in appearance, was largely superficial and under her control. Her wound wasn’t as dire as it seemed.
So, she could only cry and drink bland porridge.
Now, back in her own domain, all she wanted was a hearty meal.
She wasn’t just wealthy; she was outrageously so, worth tens of thousands—not in copper coins, but silver taels. Yet here she was, unable to eat even a morsel of meat. What was the point of such riches?
However, contrary to her usual compliance, Zi Yuan remained steadfast today. “No, Miss. Even if your wound doesn’t look severe, an injury is an injury. Dietary restrictions must be observed.”
“The physician was clear: no raw or cold foods, no greasy dishes, no meat, no sweets, no alcohol.”
Yu Zhi Yi: “…”
Forget it. Let the world burn.
Days of recovery were bland and uneventful.
While she could have forced Zi Yuan to cook something delicious, Chancellor Du and Madam Du visited her daily, inspecting her meals. If they discovered that Zi Yuan had defied orders, the girl would undoubtedly be scolded.
Not wanting her maid to suffer for her sake, Yu Zhi Yi suppressed her cravings.
During this time, Red Luan visited twice.
Once her partner-in-foodie-crime, Red Luan had introduced Yu Zhi Yi to many culinary delights.
Whenever they met before, Red Luan would eagerly share her culinary creations. But now, her visits brought only an assortment of medicinal herbs.
Yu Zhi Yi felt the bitterness before even tasting them.
Red Luan, full of sympathy, said, “Bear with it. You got hurt, after all. Health is the foundation of everything. Once you’ve recovered, you can enjoy all the delicious food you want.”
“When you’re better, I’ll take a day off and cook a feast for you. Sound good?”
“Braised meatballs, spicy hot pot, barbecue, shredded pork in Peking sauce, boiled pork slices, pickled fish…”
“Stop.” Yu Zhi Yi sighed. “Any more, and I’ll start drooling.”
Red Luan giggled. “Hopeless.”
Then, as if performing magic, she pulled a small bowl from an unremarkable basket. “I asked the physician. While you can’t eat much meat, a little minced meat is fine. I made you vegetable porridge with minced meat and preserved egg. Here, try it.”
Yu Zhi Yi’s eyes lit up. “!!”
After Red Luan left, Yu Zhi Yi patted her now-full stomach, thoroughly satisfied.
That was when Du Zi Heng entered the room, staring at her face, which still carried traces of a smile. For a long moment, he said nothing.
Yu Zhi Yi couldn’t stand the intensity of his gaze. She opened her eyes and impatiently asked, “What is it, Young Master Du?”
Du Zi Heng pressed his lips together.
Ever since that day, her impatience with him had stopped being an act.
“It’s nothing major. I just wanted to tell you that the mastermind behind the assassins has been found.”
“Oh.” Yu Zhi Yi’s response was lukewarm.
Du Zi Heng frowned. “You already knew?”
The words were barely out when he realized how foolish his question was.
If she could predict an assassination attempt, figuring out who was behind it would be trivial.
But Du Zi Heng had misunderstood.
She hadn’t foreseen it. In her previous life, even when she met an untimely end, the palace never uncovered the mastermind behind the attack.
Red Luan had simply shared some juicy gossip with her—Prince Loyal, accused of rebellion, had been flogged nearly to death and demoted to commoner status, now rotting in the imperial prison.
When an assassination attempt is followed by a prince being charged with treason, the connection practically writes itself.